


Draw me like one of your French girls

by toglidethroughlife (mintmarshmallow)



Category: Choices: Hero (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, coffee shop AU, fluff fluff fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:40:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24146797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mintmarshmallow/pseuds/toglidethroughlife
Summary: Coffee shop AU in which Alex can’t help but sketch her cute coffee shop crush and— wait, is he posing for her?
Relationships: Kenji Katsaros/Main Character (Choices: Hero)
Kudos: 4





	Draw me like one of your French girls

On Wednesdays, Alex likes to have lunch at the coffee shop.

Things are pretty busy at the office with The Grand’s reopening, so she loves to steal some time alone whenever she can, using the time to relax and refocus her goals for the week.

She loves winding down with a few sketches here and there while she eats, the cafe almost calmingly serene, her window-side seat providing her plenty of inspiration.

Sometimes it’s the tree on the corner of the street, its leaves a bright shade of green. Sometimes it’s the cat that keeps visiting the cafe at that hour, napping and ducking out of the high sun. Sometimes it’s the old couple that passes by occasionally, hands linked together, small smiles on their faces.

Today, it’s dark hair and chiseled features that inspire her, the handsome new face in the cafe catching her eye.

This isn’t the first time she’s noticed him — no, if she’s being honest with herself, he’s been on her radar for a while, always sitting a few tables in front of her, granting her easy access to all his red jacket-ed, smirking glory.

He always had that on, she noticed. The subtlest hint of a smirk on his lips, his head cocked a certain angle.

He must think a lot of himself, she thinks as she tries to capture his smirk on paper, her mind unintentionally recalling all the times he’d thrown that half-smile, half-smirk at the waitresses serving him.

… not that she’d been paying attention.

No, she’s just observant.

She steals another glance at him and thinks about how she couldn’t really blame him, her pencil tilted as she shades in the last of his lips.

The man has a good smile, she thinks, an almost alluring quality to it, the slightest hint of a challenge behind them.

Alex comes to a stop, her fingers tightening around her pencil, the realization that she’d just finished a full portrait of a complete stranger bringing a confused furrow to her brow.

She impulsively tears the sheet out of her notebook, contemplating what to do with it.

Her phone’s ringing shakes her out of her thoughts.

“Where the hell are you?!” Marjorie’s voice blares in her ear. “Grayson needs you.”

Oh… crap.

She scrambles as she realizes the time, sloppily arranging her things as she bids Marjorie goodbye, shoving her planner, her notes, and her sketches together on her left arm, her bag slung on her right.

In her rush, she almost bumps into the waitress coming up on her right, avoiding her by a few inches… only to hit smack against someone’s arm on her left.

She doesn’t even really see how it happens; just hears the sound of her notebooks hitting the floor with a thud.

_Shit._

Alex scrambles to collect her things, the man in front of her bending down to help her.

She almost gets a heart attack when she sees who it is.

His grey eyes meet hers and his lips curl into a soft smile — not a smirk, she notes — the image a tempting sight to get lost in.

“Thanks,” she manages to say, unable to break eye contact as she accepts her papers, her fingers a strange mess of nerves.

“You’re welcome,” he says as they both stand, his hand lingering on the sheets of paper.

He drops them with an sheepish grin, his hand flying to the back of his neck.

She finds herself returning the smile before ducking her head down as she bids him goodbye, clutching tightly onto her things as her mind begins replaying the events of the last fifteen minutes.

—

“IT WAS SO EMBARRASSING, OH MY GOOOOD,” Alex screams, hiding her face in one of Poppy’s throw pillows.

Poppy laughs, pulling the pillow from Alex, tucking it in her own lap instead.

They were chilling in her apartment, wine glasses now almost empty after Alex had told her about her afternoon.

“Let me get this straight. You have a crush on this guy in the cafe, who you’ve been seeing for weeks now, but you two have never talked, and yet somehow you know that he has the most beautiful grey eyes and you just had to draw them…

“Right, not creepy at all.”

Alex steals her pillow back, lightly smacking it against her friend as she does.

“I’m not crushing on him!” Alex points out defensively. “I just… think he’s cute.”

“So cute that you just _had_ to bump into him,” she winks.

“You’re not helping!” Alex groans in frustration, leaning back against the couch.

Poppy laughs teasingly, scooting closer to her friend. “Okay, okay. Fine. Can I see your crazy stalker sketch, at least? I wanna see these enchanting grey eyes of yours.”

Alex scowls at her — which just makes Poppy laugh some more — before reaching for her bag.

Her pulse races as she goes through her things — opening up her notebooks, going through loose sheets — the very specific sketch she was looking for nowhere to be found.

“Are you okay?” Poppy asks, and Alex’s eyes fill with dread at the realization that it’s nowhere in her bag.

No. Freaking. Way.

—

Alex returns to the coffee shop next Wednesday, wary as she walks through the glass doors.

Her eyes immediately dart to her usual seat, relief rushing through her as she takes in the lack of red leather jackets in the cafe. She tells herself to ignore the sliver of disappointment threatening to peek through, settling into her seat with her usual coffee and sandwich.

She pulls out her notebook and finds herself staring at the jagged remains of her missing notebook page, her eyes doing another quick scan across the room, landing inevitably on the pair of grey ones who’ve just entered the cafe.

Her breath catches and his smile softens, the knowing glint in his eye scaring her a bit as he turns to the counter to order.

She quickly averts her gaze, turning back to the blank sheet in front of her.

_Alex, relax._

_He comes here every week like you do. Today is no different._

_Chill._

She takes a deep breath and exhales, the red-jacketed man coming into her peripheral vision as he takes a seat at his usual spot, two tables in front of her.

Again, this is normal, she tells herself, taking a bite out of her sandwich and chewing fast, the idea of returning to her office desk suddenly more attractive.

She’s just about done with her meal when she catches a glimpse of him, his face turned towards the window, eyes closed as if to drink in the sunlight.

Uh… what?

The sunlight hits his features beautifully, touching the planes of his face, the bridge of his nose, the corners of his mouth which have turned up ever so slightly. His eyes open and he looks at her dead on, not even the least bit surprised to find her looking at him, a challenging smirk spreading wide on his lips.

He turns his head to the side once more, bringing his hand up so that his chin rests on his palm, staring out the window while his laptop sits in front of him, his expression “seemingly” deep in thought.

Alex’s eyebrows knit together.

Is he… _posing_?

… Huh.

Okay. _I’ll bite_.

She flips to a clean sheet on her notebook, thoughtful as she maps out his features on paper, subsequently biting her lips as an idea pops into her head.

It doesn’t take long before she thinks she’s got a decent enough sketch to show him, tearing out the sheet from her notebook.

She stands before she can second-guess herself, the look of utter surprise on his face doing wonders for her ego.

_Alright, smirky boy. Let’s see what you’ve got._

He’s recovered past his flustered state when she reaches his table, casually inviting her to sit down with a slight nod of his head.

“I believe you have something that belongs to me,” she starts as soon as she’s seated, hopeful that her voice doesn’t start cracking. “I’m here to ask for it back.”

She bites back a satisfied grin when he doesn’t deny having it.

“Straight to the point, huh? I like that.“

He reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out what is unmistakably a sheet from her notebook, now neatly folded into an eighth of its size.

Its corners show signs of wear, but the neat way it’s been folded tells her it’s been cared for by its new keeper.

_Interesting_.

“So,” his voice brings her attention back to his face. “What do I get in return?”

She quirks an eyebrow in amusement, lips pursed as she gages what to make of his tone. “Excuse me?”

"It is my face, after all. I feel like I should get something in return.”

She notices him eyeing the folded sheet in her hand, curiosity piqued.

She leans in and brings the sketch between them, offering it to him.

He accepts, not once breaking eye contact as his hands unfold the sketch, smirking before his eyes dart down.

Alex watches the smirk fall off his face.

The sketch shows a toonier version of him, a smirk on his lips as he admires his reflection on the window, eyes gazing appreciatively. There are three bubbles on the upper right side of his head, five words written inside them.

_“Damn. Lookin’ good today, eh?”_

Alex is almost worried until he bursts out laughing, one hand flying up to cover his face.

“Okay, I deserve this,” he admits, chuckling still as he looks at the drawing. “You even got my good side,” he hums appreciatively. “My jawline looks sharp.”

Alex watches him laugh with amusement, trying to decide if he’s being cute or a little nuts.

_How is it that he’s even more attractive right now?!_

He looks up from the sheet with delighted eyes.

“Here,” he says, returning Alex’s original sketch to her. “I gotta admit, I was a little worried you were ignoring me earlier. You were very, um, focused on your sandwich.”

“Ha,” she laughs nervously. “Right. It was, uh, a good sandwich.”

Their eyes meet and they’re both silent for a minute, slow smiles spreading on their faces.

“Got any room left for dessert?” he asks, fingers fidgeting with the sketch in his hand. “I hear this place makes an excellent molten lava cake.”

He flashes her a charismatic grin. “On me, of course.”

Alex feigns suspicion, but his eyes squint with delight, beaming at her. “Is this your reward for returning my sketch? If so, I’m pretty sure I’m the one who should be paying.”

He laughs, leaning in slightly. “Nah, I’d say your company’s the real reward here.”

Alex feels her cheeks flushing before they both break into chuckles, heads ducking down before they both meet again.

“You’re not one for subtlety, are you?” Alex asks.

He grins at her brightly. “I don’t like leaving good things to chance.”

His gaze holds hers in place, a tinge of sincerity behind his cheesy line.

“So, how about that cake?”

Alex smiles. “Sure. But I don’t share cake with strangers.” She extends her hand out to him. “I’m Alex.”

She doesn’t miss how his smile grows with relief.

“Kenji. Kenji Katsaros.”

**Author's Note:**

> come hang with me on tumblr @toglidethroughlife


End file.
